Short Term 12

One of the few movies in my life I cried at. Due to some of my background I was moved by the subject matter. It is one of the most natural movies I have ever seen. The entire cast seemed like real people and not one of them seemed like an actor. Great movies plunge the viewer into real lives as if they suddenly discovered someone else's life in front of them. The writer/director also had balance in the story, The most emotional scenes had tremendous impact because the timing when they occurred was not suspected. The scenes were gut-wrenching and drove me to emotional experiences as if I was a person in the film. Thus, the tears. This may be a hard film for viewers to be involved with, but it is worth every minute of it. The private lives of the leaders were weaved into the film and gave great understanding to the people who ran the agency. The child acting was without a flaw, and I felt as if I knew them in real life. I urge you to see it, but prepare yourself for an emotional ride with people in dire circumstances. A simply great film!!

It's not just the residents in this home that are damaged. To some degree, the staff comes here with their own life experiences that are just as damaging as those they care for. Maybe being damaged is what attracts people to the work - I certainly saw it often in psychology and counseling classes.

Grace (Brie Larson), the supervisor, is certainly dealing with a damaged past. It is probably what makes her good at her job, but it does cause her problems. It's balancing the two that makes one successful.

Cutting, anger, withdrawal, are all things you will see in these children/young adults. They are manifestations of their unnatural upbringing. Marcus (Keith Stanfield) is terrified at the prospect of going out on his own. Jayden (Kaitlyn Dever) guards her secret past, while Grace tries to pry it open.

Every day is a challenge, and the worst part is not ever knowing if you were successful.

After seeing this movie, I realized how the Academy works. If a movie doesn't have the budget to distribute their film to a vast amount of cities or campaign well, then it is unlikely to get its deserved recognition. I sat through the 96 minutes of this Indie film that got raved with impressive reviews at SXSW to see what the fuss was about. The people behind this movie deserve SO much more praise than they have gotten. This film, though not technically masterful, is emotionally wrenching. I laughed, I freaking cried my heart out, and overall it felt real. There was a connection to the film that was surprisingly amazing. The movie reminded me to Blue is the Warmest Color in the sense that it was raw, powerful, real, and astonishing. Brie Larson should have easily been one of the five nominees for Best Actress as well as Keith Stanfield for Best Supporting Actor. This film is a portrayal of neglected youth, a rare look at relationships, an articulation of the fears in the world, and a new point of view that most films have never shown before. I truly recommend this film to everyone, and will always give it the praise it deserves.

At its core, Short Term 12 is a film about kids looking after kids. That youthful always-learning energy gives it a warmth and sincerity that's extremely endearing and a joy to watch these vulnerable and intriguing characters. It's about outcasts fitting in together and finding their place making it relatable for whenever you've felt alone and brings in a welcoming sense of community. It's Brie Larson's protagonist Grace who heads the entire ensemble on her shoulders. She gives a heartfelt performance, tough on the outside, swirling chaos on the inside, and she's able to get that on screen and develop it in every scene. In the way she is written, she shows the value of a nurturing character and how that can get the audience's sympathy regardless of any negative behaviour. The screenplay is terrific, juggling its arcs very efficiently and delivering comedy and drama in equal doses.

It can get too comical or sentimental at times but its overall maturity cancels it out. With its hand-held photography, it has a raw aesthetic that cuts through potential contrivances and predictability and gives it an involving sense of authenticity. The majority of the scenes are long and dialogue driven, often reflecting on short sharp outbursts or telling stories within the story be it an anecdote, rap or children's story read aloud. It provides an ideal pace and length it to feel brisk yet able to breathe and feel like a fulfilling 90 minutes. It's a film about catharsis and connection after deep repression, and the fact it's about young people makes the tragedies hurt more and the sense of hope more touching. It does have a bad habit of using the cliché of misplaced anger a bit too often, where a character furious at someone will instead hit those closest to them, but the deep rooted empathy for these characters allows those moments to feel at least somewhat justified as we feel that intense release with them.

The supporting performances are also fantastic, characters that although may follow a convention feel like they're coming from a genuine place. It's not often that a film like this would start its story with a relatively optimistic relationship as that dials down the potential for conflict, but John Gallagher Jr. and his chemistry with Larson makes it one we love watching and dread that moment where it inevitably goes wrong. Keith Stanfield is a standout from the younger crowd of actors whose powerful tenderness constantly gave me chills and Kaitlyn Denver who navigates around cliché and provides an earnest and passionate performance. Short Term 12 knows its deck has familiar cards, but it plays them just right. It's nice to have a film that knows that an original perspective is more engaging than original content. Despite its flaws, it's a really great emotional film and definitely the type of film I'd love to make.

8/10

Incredibly natural in its approach, wonderfully balanced from start to finish & further solidified by a convincing ensemble performances, Short Term 12 tells the story of Grace, a very caring & capable supervisor at a foster-care facility for at-risk teenagers. There are three story lines that emerge from this film; one is about Marcus, a quiet kid who's about to turn eighteen but doesn't want to leave the facility, the second plot line is about Jayden, a troubled teenage girl who's the latest member of the club. And the final & main plot line is about Grace herself, whose past returns to haunt her after meeting Jayden with whom she shares a connection plus the unexpected surprise she discovers that can have a major impact on her future, thus leaving her utterly confused with everything about her life.

The entire cast has given a brilliant performance, but it's Brie Larson who impresses the most as Grace and the film manages to portray her toughness & fragility evocatively. The locations are very lifelike, the entire film has a very calm & relaxed atmosphere for which the shooting location is responsible for, editing is finely done & it is smartly written & directed. On an overall scale, Short Term 12 is one of those dramas that are heartwarming & heartbreaking at the same time that will have you go through every emotion you're capable of and dares to deal with issues most people or families aren't very comfortable viewing or discussing about.